1. Field of Invention
The present invention generally relates to a golf cup and more particularly to a golf cup and method for providing an audible sound as a golf ball is dropped into the cup and an advertising method effective when approaching the cup.
2. Background Art
Golf cups are well known and have had various constructions while maintaining a basic form in order to meet standard rules within golfing associations. With the ever increasing interest in golf around the world, golf cups are seen as one effective marketing tool for adding to the golfing interests of the public.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,928,417 issued to Louis H. Boudreau on May 29, 1990 discloses a golf cup advertising device having a substantially doughnut shaped insert which fits into a conventional golf cup to display an advertisement. The advertisement is visible to a golfer when putting or when retrieving the golf ball from the cup. The cup must be removed from its place in the ground when replacing advertising devices.
Metal golf cups have typically been replaced by cups constructed of molded plastic in order to better withstand the exposure to weather and provide a device having lower maintenance and replacement cost. When attempting to understand the psyche of a golfer however, it is understood that metal cups provide a benefit that not found in their plastic replacements, the pinging sound when a putt results in a golf ball dropping into the cup. To this end, golf cups have been constructed using metal parts and configured such that a ball dropping into the cup creates this pinging sound. In one known device, a plastic golf cup comprises a cast metal inner cup having a center hole for receiving the golf flag stick. A metal disk covers the metal cup for providing a hollow metal can. The disk has a center hole coaxial with the cup for loosely receiving the flag stick. The effect of the metal can is such that a pinging sound is created when a golf ball is dropped into the cup bringing added pleasure to the golfer.